If you are behind on property taxes in Centre County, the unpaid amount is turned over to the county for collection, and if it stays unpaid the county can eventually sell your property at a public upset tax sale. You can stop that sale right up until it happens, either by paying what is owed in full or by putting 25% down and entering an installment agreement. You can also still sell the home yourself: the back taxes are paid out of the proceeds at closing, and any equity left over is yours. Acting before the sale date is what matters, because in most Pennsylvania counties there is no right to buy your home back after an upset sale.
Falling behind on property taxes is more common than people think, and it very often starts with something that had nothing to do with money management, a death in the family, an illness, an estate that never got settled. Pennsylvania's process is slow and it gives you real chances to fix things. The one thing that does not help is waiting.
In Centre County it is the county's Tax Collection & Tax Claim office that administers delinquent property taxes and the tax sale process. Their page is here: https://centrecountypa.gov/427/Tax-Collection-Tax-Claim
That office is who you call to find out exactly what you owe, whether a sale date has been set against your parcel, and to ask for a payment arrangement. Nothing on this page substitutes for that call.
Unpaid county, municipal and school taxes are turned over for collection. If they stay unpaid, the county can eventually sell the property at a public upset tax sale, and if it does not sell there, at a later judicial sale (72 P.S. 5860.601 et seq.).
An upset sale is Pennsylvania's first-stage public auction of tax-delinquent property, with an opening price set to cover the back taxes and costs. Existing mortgages and most liens are not wiped out at that stage, they pass to the buyer with the property (72 P.S. 5860.605). A judicial, or free-and-clear, sale happens later if the property did not sell at upset, and conveys it free of most liens (72 P.S. 5860.612).
Two things are true at once. The process takes well over a year of delinquency to reach a sale, and once a sale date is set it is real.
You must be given notice before the county can sell, and the sale is advertised in advance (72 P.S. 5860.602). Upset sales are held no earlier than the second Monday of September (72 P.S. 5860.601). Your county's actual date is the one that matters, so ask the Tax Collection & Tax Claim office for it directly rather than working from anything you read online, including this page.
Yes. This is the single most common thing people get wrong. Unpaid taxes are paid off out of the sale proceeds at closing, and any remaining equity is yours. Owing back taxes does not stop a sale from going through, it just means the debt is settled from the money at the table.
What it does change is the clock. A traditional listing takes time you may not have if a sale date is close, which is why it is worth knowing your date before you decide how to sell.
Most Pennsylvania counties, Centre County included, operate under the Real Estate Tax Sale Law, where there is no right to buy the property back after an upset sale. Philadelphia and Allegheny County operate under a different statute, the Municipal Claims and Tax Liens Act, which does provide a redemption period for owner-occupied property (53 P.S. 7293). Because redemption turns on which county you are in and whether the home is owner-occupied, confirm your own situation with the county or a counselor rather than assuming either way.
The county can sell it, yes, but not quickly and not without notice. Unpaid taxes are turned over for collection, and only after an extended period of delinquency and advertised notice can the property go to an upset sale (72 P.S. 5860.601 et seq.).
Pay the delinquency in full, or put 25% down and enter an installment agreement, which stays the sale while you pay the rest (72 P.S. 5860.603). Contact the Centre County Tax Collection & Tax Claim office to arrange it, and a HUD-approved housing counselor at 1-800-569-4287 can help you work through it for free.
Yes. The unpaid taxes are paid off from the sale proceeds at closing, and any equity left over is yours.
Pennsylvania's first-stage public auction of tax-delinquent property, with an opening price set to cover the back taxes and costs. Existing mortgages and most liens are not wiped out, they pass to the buyer with the property (72 P.S. 5860.605).
In most Pennsylvania counties, no. Philadelphia and Allegheny County fall under a different statute that does provide a redemption period for owner-occupied property (53 P.S. 7293). Confirm your own situation with the county or a counselor.
The county's Tax Collection & Tax Claim office, at https://centrecountypa.gov/427/Tax-Collection-Tax-Claim. They can tell you your balance, whether a sale date is set, and what payment arrangements are available.
No. Orrindale is free to homeowners and we are not a buyer. If we have local buyers working in your county we will introduce you, you choose who to talk to, and you are never under any obligation. If we do not, we will still point you to free help.
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This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. For your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state or the relevant agency. Orrindale is a matching service, not a law firm, lender, or government program.